A Hindu man is to ask the high court to overturn a ban on open-air cremations to allow the ancient religious ritual to take place in Britain.

Davender Kumar Ghai, 69, is challenging Newcastle city council's decision to deny him an open-air cremation when he dies. In 2006 the local authority blocked his attempt to establish Britain's first approved site for burning bodies in the open, ruling it would breach cremation laws.

Human rights lawyers will argue that open-air pyres fall outside the 1902 Cremation Act, which regulates what happens inside a crematorium, defined as "any building fitted with appliances for the purpose of burning human remains".

The burning of a human body in the open air, they will say, is an offence only if it causes a public nuisance, which would be avoided because the sites would be in secluded locations. The hearing in November is expected to last three days.

Indic religions allow open-air cremations, although these are not compulsory nor universal.

Hinduism regards the body as an external garment that the individual inhabits. When this garment becomes worn out the individual moves on, taking a new birth and a new body.

According to the 2001 census there were 558,342 Hindus in the UK although the figure is thought to be closer to 1 million, based on immigration levels.

Andrew Singh Dogan, the legal coordinator of the multi-faith Anglo-Asian Friendship Society, said a positive outcome would primarily benefit Hindus, although people from all backgrounds could opt for an open-air cremation.

"An open-air pyre is £500 and a cheaper alternative to a traditional cremation, which costs at least £2,000 and has you in and out in half an hour. An open-air pyre allows you to make it an all-day event, where you can eat, drink and cry and make it a family occasion.

"This ritual has been practised, virtually unchanged, in India for thousands of years. We've had many letters of support from individuals and organisations. Mr Ghai is a devout Hindu who wishes to be cremated according to Hindu scripture."

Ghai, who is the head of the friendship society, was responsible for the first human funeral pyre in Britain since 1934, when the Home Office authorised the outdoor cremation of Sumshere Jung, a Nepalese princess and the wife of the Nepalese ambassador.

Ghai also arranged for the body of Rajpal Mehat, a 31-year-old Indian illegal immigrant found drowned in a London canal, to be burnt on a wooden pyre at a secret location in Northumberland in 2006.

Newcastle council deemed the ceremony illegal and a police file was passed to the Crown Prosecution Service. It ruled that an offence had been committed, but said prosecution would not be in the public interest.

Jay Lakhani, of the Hindu Academy, described open-air cremation as an "antiquated practice".

"Modern India is growing up and in tiny villages where they don't have facilities they have these pyres. In Britain we are very lucky to have hygienic crematoriums. The ceremonial aspects should evolve to reflect the changes in society."

A spokesman from the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs refused to comment on the environmental impact of open-air cremations, saying the matter was subject to a judicial review.